Can a photographic portrait inspire political imagination? Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination examines how photographers and their sitters contributed to the proliferation of Pan-African solidarity during the mid-20th century. Embracing the international spirit of the time, the exhibition gathers striking pictures by photographers working in Central and West African cities. They created images of everyday citizens, dazzling music scenes, and potent manifestations of youth culture that reflected emerging political realities.
Photographs by Jean Depara, Seydou Keïta, Malick Sidibé, and Sanlé Sory portray residents across Bamako, Bobo-Dioulasso, and Kinshasa at a time when the winds of decolonial change swept the African continent in tandem with the burgeoning US Civil Rights movement. The exhibition also spotlights James Barnor and Kwame Brathwaite—photographers living in Europe and North America who contributed to the construction of Africa as a political idea. Contemporary works by artists such as Samuel Fosso, Silvia Rosi, and Njideka Akunyili Crosby show the enduring relevance of these themes. Brimming with possibility, Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination embraces the creative potential of the photographic portrait and its political resonance across the globe.
Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination
Leadership support for the exhibition is provided by the Jon Stryker Endowment Fund.
Major funding is provided by The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Denise Littlefield Sobel, Jerry Speyer and Katherine Farley, and The Black Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art.
Additional support is provided by the Anne Levy Charitable Trust.
Support is provided by the Annual Exhibition Fund. Leadership contributions to the Annual Exhibition Fund, in support of the Museum’s collection and collection exhibitions, are generously provided by Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, the Eyal and Marilyn Ofer Family Foundation, the Noel and Harriette Levine Endowment, Jerry Speyer and Katherine Farley, Alice and Tom Tisch, the Marella and Giovanni Agnelli Fund for Exhibitions, Eva and Glenn Dubin, Mimi Haas, The David Rockefeller Council, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, The Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz, Kenneth C. Griffin, The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis, and Ronald S. and Jo Carole Lauder. Major funding is provided by The Sundheim Family Foundation.
The Bloomberg Connects digital experience is made possible through the support of Bloomberg Philanthropies.
The publication is made possible by Denise Littlefield Sobel. Additional funding is provided by the John Szarkowski Publications Fund.
Source: MoMA
